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Al-Sharaa: Syria’s Reconstruction Will Cost $600 to $900 Billion

 Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and CBS News journalist, Margaret Brennan, amid destruction in Syria  
 Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and CBS News journalist, Margaret Brennan, amid destruction in Syria  
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Al-Sharaa: Syria’s Reconstruction Will Cost $600 to $900 Billion

 Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and CBS News journalist, Margaret Brennan, amid destruction in Syria  
 Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and CBS News journalist, Margaret Brennan, amid destruction in Syria  

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said on Monday that reconstructing Syria is a top priority for the state, estimating the reconstruction cost for the war-ravaged country to be between $600 and $900 billion.

“The world watched this tragedy unfold for 14 years and couldn't do anything to stop this massive crime. So, the world today should provide support to Syria,” the Syrian President said in an interview with “60 Minutes” show on the American channel CBS News.

Al-Sharaa toured the entirely destroyed area of Jobar, on the outskirts of Damascus with his interviewer at the American channel.

“There are entire generations that have suffered tremendous psychological trauma. So, it's very important to give people new hope for their return and for reconstruction,” the Syrian president said during the tour.

According to Syria’s state-run news agency, SANA, al-Sharaa told the channel that “general elections will be held once the infrastructure is rebuilt, and once the population has IDs and proper documents.”

He stressed that he wants Syria to be a place where every person gets a vote, affirming his belief in the resilience and strength of the Syrian people, who are capable of rising again.

Al-Sharaa also said his country will use all legal means possible to demand that Bashar al-Assad, who fled to Russia, be brought to justice. However, engaging in a conflict with Russia right now would be too costly for Syria. Nor would it be in the country's interest, he stated.

Regarding the recent events in the coastal region of Sweida, the President said, “This is a Syrian internal matter that should be resolved legally by Syrian authorities,” pledging that the state is committed to prosecute those involved.

“I believe that Syria is committed to prosecuting anyone who committed crimes against civilians, of any party or side,” he added.

On the issue of repeated Israeli attacks on Syria, al-Sharaa said, “Syria doesn’t pose any threat to anyone” describing the Israeli attacks on the presidential palace as “a declaration of war.”

He said Syria “doesn’t want to engage in wars, and it doesn’t want to be a threat to Israel or anyone else,” calling on Israel to withdraw from Syrian territories it occupied after December 8.

Also, the president clarified that “operations carried out by ‘Hayat Tahrir al-Sham’ prior to liberation were aimed solely at overthrowing the Assad regime, and that the group did not conduct operations outside Syrian territory nor did it target anyone other than regime forces.”

Al-Sharaa reiterated that he had severed ties with both ISIS and al-Qaeda, noting that, “If I had agreed with them, I wouldn’t have left them.”

Asked what was it like when he first entered the presidential palace, al-Sharaa said: “Entering this palace wasn't a very positive experience. Much evil towards the Syrian people came out of this palace, since it was built.”

The CBS News journalist then asked al-Sharaa to comment on US President Donald Trump’s remarks after he met him back in May and described him as handsome, tough and had a strong past.

Al-Sharaa said, “Have you any doubt about that?”

 

 

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Arab World

Lives Being Upended on Massive Scale in Lebanon, Says UN Refugee Agency

A boy looks on while lying under a blanket alongside family belongings in a makeshift encampment along the waterfront in Beirut on March 10, 2026, as civilians who fled the city's southern suburbs due to Israeli bombardment remain displaced. (AFP)
A boy looks on while lying under a blanket alongside family belongings in a makeshift encampment along the waterfront in Beirut on March 10, 2026, as civilians who fled the city's southern suburbs due to Israeli bombardment remain displaced. (AFP)
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Lives Being Upended on Massive Scale in Lebanon, Says UN Refugee Agency

A boy looks on while lying under a blanket alongside family belongings in a makeshift encampment along the waterfront in Beirut on March 10, 2026, as civilians who fled the city's southern suburbs due to Israeli bombardment remain displaced. (AFP)
A boy looks on while lying under a blanket alongside family belongings in a makeshift encampment along the waterfront in Beirut on March 10, 2026, as civilians who fled the city's southern suburbs due to Israeli bombardment remain displaced. (AFP)

‌Lives have been upended on a massive scale in Lebanon amid a wider conflict in the Middle East, with more than 667,000 people now registered as displaced within the country - an increase of ‌100,000 in ‌just one day - the ‌UN ⁠refugee agency said ⁠on Tuesday.

Lebanon was dragged into the US-Israeli war on Iran this month when Iran-backed Hezbollah launched rockets ⁠and drones into Israel, which ‌has ‌responded with heavy bombardment across the ‌country.

Some 120,000 people are ‌staying in government designated shelters, while others are still looking for somewhere to stay, the ‌UNHCR said, citing government figures.

"Many others are ⁠staying ⁠with relatives or friends or still searching for accommodation, and we see cars lined along the street with people sleeping in them and also on the sidewalks," said Karolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR representative in Lebanon.

Arab World

Syrian Interior Ministry Airs Confessions of ‘Saraya al-Jawad’ Members

The February operation targeted hideouts in the villages of Beit Alouni and Basniya in Latakia province. (SANA)
The February operation targeted hideouts in the villages of Beit Alouni and Basniya in Latakia province. (SANA)
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Syrian Interior Ministry Airs Confessions of ‘Saraya al-Jawad’ Members

The February operation targeted hideouts in the villages of Beit Alouni and Basniya in Latakia province. (SANA)
The February operation targeted hideouts in the villages of Beit Alouni and Basniya in Latakia province. (SANA)

The Syrian Interior Ministry released a video showing confessions from members of the "Saraya al-Jawad" armed group, nearly two weeks after announcing a raid on one of its main strongholds in the countryside of Jableh in the Latakia province.

According to the ministry, the February 23 operation targeted hideouts in the villages of Beit Alouni and Basniya in Latakia province. The raid killed the group’s coastal leader Bashar Abdullah Abu Ruqayya and two other commanders, and led to the arrest of six members.

The video released Monday includes footage from the twin operation carried out by the Interior Ministry’s Internal Security Directorate.

Authorities said the raid followed several days of surveillance and resulted in the destruction of a weapons depot and explosives storage site belonging to the group.

One member of the Syrian special task forces was killed and another was lightly wounded during the operation.

In the recorded confessions, detainees said they took part in attacks along the Syrian coast in March 2025. One suspect admitted to ambushing a General Security patrol and killing one officer during a clash.

The confessions also described the establishment of an operations room in a residential house that doubled as an arms depot. According to the detainees, the group received financial support from businessmen Ayman Jaber and Mohammad Jaber, while supplies were smuggled in from Lebanon.

Mohammad Jaber, a businessman close to the former government of Bashar al-Assad and a commander in the Desert Hawks militia founded by his brother Ayman, previously appeared in a television interview acknowledging his role in organizing attacks by pro-regime remnants along the Syrian coast on March 6, 2025.

Documents and recordings obtained by Al Jazeera’s investigative program Al-Mutahari suggested that senior figures linked to the former government sought to form armed groups to carry out attacks on Syrian security forces and the army.

The Interior Ministry said it is pursuing members of those networks and attempting to curb their activities.

Saraya al-Jawad has been active in Syria’s coastal region — particularly in Latakia, Jableh and Tartus — since August 2025, when activists circulated a video showing a car bomb targeting a General Security vehicle in rural Jableh.

Earlier this month, security forces in Tartus also arrested three suspects — Ali Zuhair Idris, Ammar Madin Youssef and Mousa Mazhar Mia — accused of planning attacks targeting the province’s security and civilians.

Officials said intelligence showed the group had received explosives training abroad before infiltrating back into Syria.

Arab World

Hezbollah Pressure on Military Court Undermines Lebanon’s Weapons Ban

Blankets are distributed at a school converted into a shelter in Beirut, where a banner displaying images of leaders and members of Hezbollah can be seen (EPA). 
Blankets are distributed at a school converted into a shelter in Beirut, where a banner displaying images of leaders and members of Hezbollah can be seen (EPA). 
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Hezbollah Pressure on Military Court Undermines Lebanon’s Weapons Ban

Blankets are distributed at a school converted into a shelter in Beirut, where a banner displaying images of leaders and members of Hezbollah can be seen (EPA). 
Blankets are distributed at a school converted into a shelter in Beirut, where a banner displaying images of leaders and members of Hezbollah can be seen (EPA). 

Lebanon’s government decision to prohibit any military or security activity by Hezbollah has yet to translate into meaningful enforcement.

Hezbollah has continued to escalate its military operations, launching rockets and drones toward Israeli territory, while signs of deteriorating security have appeared inside Lebanon, particularly among displaced residents who have fled southern Lebanon and Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Security agencies have struggled to identify those responsible for launching rockets toward Israel. However, Lebanese forces recently recorded a notable development with the arrest of around 30 individuals affiliated with or supportive of Hezbollah.

The detainees were apprehended while fleeing alongside civilians from southern areas and the southern suburbs of Beirut after being found carrying individual weapons, including assault rifles, pistols and grenades.

The arrests appeared to signal a tentative shift in how Lebanon’s security and judicial institutions handle the issue of illegal weapons. Yet the move quickly ran up against what officials say is Hezbollah’s continuing influence over judicial decisions.

Last week, the military court tried three Hezbollah members detained days earlier. The court imposed a fine of 900,000 Lebanese pounds —about $10 — on each of them for possessing unlicensed military weapons and waived any prison sentence.

The ruling diverges sharply from typical sentences in similar cases, where possession or transport of unlicensed weapons usually carries at least a one-month prison term.

Judicial sources say the unusually lenient sentence reflects pressure exerted by Hezbollah on the military court to secure the release of its detained members.

According to the sources, the group sought their release last Thursday and pushed for their trial to be held the following day. The military prosecutor’s office objected, resulting in the hearing being postponed until Monday.

The verdict also drew criticism from the government commissioner to the military court, Judge Claude Ghanem, who promptly appealed the ruling before the Military Court of Cassation, requesting tougher penalties.

A judicial source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the ruling was “extremely lenient and failed to account for all the legal provisions under which the suspects were charged.” The source added that the commissioner had received preliminary investigation files concerning four additional detainees and was preparing to file charges against them in the coming hours while seeking stricter sentences.

Only hours after the verdict was issued, Lebanese Justice Minister Adel Nassar ordered that the civilian adviser to the military tribunal, Judge Abbas Jaha, be referred to the Judicial Inspection Authority for investigation.

A Justice Ministry source told Asharq Al-Awsat that the referral stemmed from “the circumstances surrounding the trial and his failure to object to this suspicious ruling.” The source noted that another member of the court panel, a military officer, had opposed the decision while Jaha approved it without reservation.

Weapons and rising tensions in host communities

Legally, the arrest of armed Hezbollah members represents a direct application of the government decision banning any military or security activity by the group. In principle, the ruling applies to anyone carrying weapons outside state authority and places them under threat of prosecution.

The more pressing challenge, however, lies in dealing with armed individuals among displaced populations.

Several neighborhoods in Beirut, including Hamra, Ras Beirut, Sakiat al-Janzir and Ain al-Remmaneh, as well as the towns of Aramoun and Kfarshima in Mount Lebanon, have witnessed repeated incidents involving gunfire, displays of weapons and confrontations with local residents.

Videos circulating on social media show armed men threatening residents, including footage recorded Sunday in Aramoun.

These incidents have heightened anxiety among host communities already grappling with mounting social and economic pressures.

Some residents say the security measures in place remain “below the required level,” arguing that the absence of deterrent action risks encouraging further incidents and creating the impression that the law is applied hesitantly when those involved are linked to Hezbollah.

A Lebanese security source, however, insisted that authorities treat all security incidents seriously. Delays in reaching certain locations, the source said, often result from limited personnel and the difficulty of maintaining coverage across all displacement areas.

Security forces maintain a near-permanent presence at the entrances of schools and facilities housing displaced people, the source added, while most incidents occur in nearby streets and neighborhoods. Patrols respond immediately to reports of gunfire or clashes, detaining suspects or pursuing them if they leave the scene.

Nevertheless, the official acknowledged that the continued incidents could lead to broader friction between displaced populations and local residents — particularly in densely populated areas — at a time when host communities are already under severe economic strain and displacement is expected to continue for months.